Up your brand awareness with a festive message this holiday season

Forget e-cards – nothing quite says you care like a holiday greeting card. Whether your business is big or small, with the holiday season fast approaching, it’s time to put on your thinking cap to create a special holiday message for your customers, clients and employees.

A holiday card is a great way to show your customers you care. Much like the old school business card, it also serves as a networking opportunity, providing a tangible reminder to your clients of your services whilst simultaneously wishing them well.

A holiday card can also be used as a touchpoint to reach out to new clients ensuring your services are front of mind should the need arise. Extend the offering to your employees and you will also generate some warm and fuzzies. You’d be surprised what a well-timed card thanking them for their work can generate in terms of good will.

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Celebrities love making personal holiday cards. Check out a few or our faves

However, if you are going to send out a greeting card these holidays there are 6 golden rules you need to stick by.

Check all the details
Like Santa, check your list not once, not twice but thrice and make sure you have your intended recipients’ names and addresses correct. Pay particular attention to the spelling of people’s names. Nothing will undo your hard work quicker than a misspelled moniker.

Send cards early
Get your cards in the post with plenty of time to spare. There’s no point sending a card if it is going to arrive late. The holiday season can put excessive strain on the postal service, so be certain to get your cards in the mail early.

Handwrite a holiday message
If time is on your side try to include a handwritten message in your card. Customers, clients, sponsors and investors will all place greater value on a personal message than a hastily scrawled signature.

Be individual and creative
Make sure your holiday card stands out from the crowd. Consider creating your own card and printing it with a local service or utilise a graphic artist to help you come up with a unique design.

Don’t send a sales pitch
Forget about the sales pitch. The point of your holiday greeting is to make your customer or client feel special. They will feel less so if they think they are simply being delivered a thinly disguised sales pitch masquerading as a holiday greeting.

Cec is the editor of KBB. She is a multimedia professional with over fifteen years experience as an editor on titles as diverse as SX, Better Pictures, Total Rock, MTV, fasterlouder, mynikonlife and Fantastic Living. She has spent the past four years working as a news journalist covering all the issues that matter in the political, health and LGBTIQ arena. She is the Head of Content at Pinstripe Media and a recent convert to the world of small business.